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Why doesn’t Belarus set the clocks back in autumn?

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Why doesn’t Belarus set the clocks back in autumn?

28.10.2017 18:10

Belarus hasn’t been setting the clocks back for several years now. Here are the main reasons for it.

Why set the clocks back? One of the main reasons is saving energy. It is considered that by setting the clocks back, the daylight increases. Therefore, less energy can be used. Since 1992 Belarus has been setting the clocks backwards and forwards. However, in 2011 Belarus decided to follow the example of Russia, which preferred to stick to universal time. Belarus then decided not to set the clocks in spring and autumn in order to fully use the daylight. According to authority officials, this lets to improve the conditions of labor and amenities.

Belarus’ neighbors-Lithuania, Latvia, Poland and Ukraine set the clocks back. If to consider the former Soviet states, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan don’t set the clocks in spring and autumn.

How much energy can be saved by setting the clocks back? Not much. A lot more can be saved by means of energy efficient electronic appliances and equipment. According to the Energy Ministry of the Republic of Belarus, the country saved only 0.05% of energy from the annual energy consumption in spring, and 0.02% in autumn. It sums up to about 28 million kilowatts per hour. It is nothing if considering the fact that Belarus annually uses 39 billion kilowatts per hour